Building the Ideal Relationship Survey (2023)

Introduction

The Ontario Federation of Agriculture (OFA) developed a guide to assist anyone who provides services to OFA members with a better understanding of the unique needs of the agricultural sector. To do so, we conducted a survey in 2020 to learn more about your experiences – good and bad – so we could relay these tips and lessons to those who have limited experience working with farmers. We are conducting this follow-up survey in 2023 to determine if attitudes or trends have changed since 2020.

We are asking for your experience with “service providers” in the broadest sense – representatives from banks, government, input companies, conservation authorities, utilities, and others. Please share any stories you think are relevant, without identifying individual names or companies. In our resource guide, we may wish to use these experiences as case studies to teach service providers how to better serve farm families.

Your responses will be kept confidential and will only be reported in aggregate form. The survey should only take 10 minutes to complete.

Thank you for your input.

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* 1. Please enter your OFA membership number.

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* 2. On average, how long are your relationships with service providers (i.e. bank representatives, input suppliers, etc.)?

1-2 years

3-5 years

6-10 years

More than 10 years

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* 3. Are you more likely to do business with organizations who are active in your local community (through direct involvement, donations, etc.)?

Yes

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* 4. Which communication method do you prefer to use when working with service providers?

Face-to-face

Over the phone

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* 5. What characteristics matter the most to you in a service provider? Please check all that apply.

Ability to complete job quickly and correctly

Age

Assertiveness

Common values

Communication skills

Curiousity/desire to learn more

Gender

Humility

Interest in other aspects of your life

Involvement in the community

Knowledge of your industry

Level of education

Marital/familial status

Proactivity

Respectfulness

Trustworthiness

Other (please specify)

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* 6. How knowledgeable do you expect service providers to be about agriculture (beyond the specifics of their job expertise)?

Very knowledgeable

Somewhat knowledgeable

Limited knowledge but willing to learn

Lack of knowledge and unwilling to learn

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* 7. How willing are you to help ‘teach’ service providers about agriculture?

Very

Somewhat

Not at all